Antonio Elosua
Mr. Perez Tejada
English 1101
November 2008

Mass media refers to a specific section of the media that is designed to reach large audiences, even whole nations. There are many forms of media that companies use to broadcast their desired message. Television, radio, newspaper, magazines, and the Internet are the main outlets of media transition. As a student in college, your eyes begin to open to all the different forms of media and your opinions start to be influenced by them. Your media sources influence your opinion, and help develop your thoughts and attitudes.
Our society depends on the communication between the audience and the producers of media. Things we come across on a daily basis may influence our decisions. As a common user of media products encountering the newspaper, television, magazines, and the World Wide Web on a daily basis is nothing new. 95% of the media we come upon is owned by 5 media conglomerates that may, in effect, change millions of opinions. Time Warner, VIACOM, Vivendi Universal, Walt Disney, and News Corporation have been known for having tremendous impact on the public’s perspective, especially when it comes to politics. A newspaper published by a conservative media conglomerate will have certain points of views and facts that may not be mentioned in another publication for the benefit of appealing to their customers.
According to conservative critics of the media, network shows like NBC, CBS, ABC and newspapers like Newsweek and The New York Times have liberal principals. In a survey conducted by the American Society of Newspaper Editors, 61% of the journalists for ABC were members, or supporters of the Democratic Party. Rupert Murdoch and Richard Parsons, CEO’s of News Corporation (Fox News) and Timer Warner respectively, have been considered heavy supporters of the Republican Party. Groups like FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting) have been trying to monitor and analyze misinformation from the U.S media. These watchdogs have helped raise awareness so that the American public is conscious of what some media producers care about; profit not facts.
As a case study, none can be better than the media coverage of the war in Iraq. Ann Scott Tyson conducted extensive research on this topic and even found out that “In September, Vice President Dick Cheney, appearing on television, cited a poll that he said showed 60 percent of Iraqis wanting US forces to stay in Iraq "at least" another year. He failed to state that the same poll showed 64 percent of Iraqis want the US to leave within a year, says Zogby, whose firm conducted the poll (Tyson).” Again, this is a great example of how naive we may be when listening to the news, and by naive I mean we listen and believe. Most of the American public needs to learn how to become active listeners and analyze the data they are unknowingly absorbing.

If you’re only going to remember two things about this essay, firstly, realize the amount of media we encounter every day. Secondly, when reading the news, especially on the television, make the transition from being a passive listener to an active one.

References
Tyson, Ann. "Media caught in Iraq's war of perceptions." The Christian Science Monitor 18 Nov 2003 16 Nov 2008 .